“In Solidarity” is Not Just the Closing of a Letter

I apologize for my silence over the past two weeks! I've been, to use the parlance of the service industry, "in the weeds." Usually I do a fairly good job of compartmentalizing my family life and my professional life, but this semester my family life threw a proverbial wrench into my professional life, and in the form of a darling, sweet, adorable little germ trap . . . my nine-month old daughter.

 

Still Life with Baby, Chicken Pox, Calamine and Comb

The first hiccup in the semester came in late October, when the Little Miss Germ Trap caught the chicken pox. That was fun! I had to take an entire week off from classes to stay home with an itchy cranky poxy infant! That one week off precipitated a backlog of essay and quiz grading and a slew of committee responsibilities that I've yet to resolve completely. And then the second hiccup came just last week, when Little Miss Germ Trap caught Roseola or The Plague or some kind of Alien Superflu, and I had to cancel yet another class, and as a result, rethink my end-of-semester final assignments.

 

This experience was not without its useful learning curve, however. (Don't take on overload assignments the semester after you give birth, Dummy! Don't teach brand new texts in that same semester! Resist joining new committees!) Also, it affirmed something I've known since I became a faculty member here:  we have a marvelous support system at SCCC, and particularly in the FA.

 

My lovely department chair , Michael Boecherer -- who is now of course a Guild member but has a history of active participation in the FA prior to his administrative position -- offered lots of good advice on addressing student needs. He even met with one of my classes briefly to address concerns and cover course material in my absence so that my students wouldn't lose valuable time at the end of the semester.

 

My office mate, the inimitable Ms. Cynthia Eaton (and the FA's Adjunct Representative) generously offered her babysitting services even though she's twice as busy as I am and has two adorable little boys of her own to look after.

 

And my good friend (and former chair of the FA's Community Outreach Committee) Adam Penna talked me down and kept me from leaping out my office window yesterday when I had myself turned inside out over all of the work I have to complete in the next two weeks. (Don't worry -- even if I'd leaped out my window I wouldn't have done much damage -- I'm on the first floor.)

 

Not to be too dramatic (har har), but I feel a profound thankfulness for having such helpful and understanding colleagues. I experienced similar camaraderie and solidarity when  I was a faculty member of the Ammerman Campus, too, so I know such friendliness is not just restricted to Eastern.

 

And not too long ago, I witnessed our FA officers and FA members come together to protect our newest members, and that experience -- much like my experience this semester -- left quite an impression on me. This country was in the deepest, most tumultuous parts of its recession, and Suffolk County Community College’s budget was threatened by cuts at the state and county level. The FA was asked to open negotiations for renewal of our contract, and the FA agreed.

 

High on the FA’s priority list was protecting the jobs of at least 70 full-time faculty members, who, like yourselves, did not yet have continuing appointment (otherwise known as tenure). Then-President Ellen Schuler Mauk wrote a clear and thorough rationale for the negotiations in a special edition of The Word (you can find it here: http://www.fascc.org/word.asp, under the 2009-2010 archives  -- titled “Contract Edition”). In a special vote ratified on June 9, 2010, 88% of the FA membership approved the 2010-2015 Faculty Association Contract.

 

The FA’s forward thinking and willingness to open negotiations early managed to avoid possible roadblocks and threats to membership in the 2011-2012 year, when the contract was originally due to be renegotiated. And when the contract is up for negotiation again in 2015, I’m confident you’ll see the same levels of cooperation between the individuals in our membership, the administration, and our union officers.

 

So you may have noticed that much of the FA's literature is often printed with the closing "in solidarity." I just wanted to remind you, with these anecdotes, that here at Suffolk it's not just a catchphrase, or an automatic, knee-jerk reaction. It's something practiced, not preached, and it's what makes working here a pleasure. I know this time of year can be incredibly stressful and busy -- but your colleagues are here for you, and if you need help, you should ask for it.